


What a Fool Believes

by VaultBot



Category: League of Legends
Genre: Alternate Universe - K/DA (League of Legends), Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Bit of Fluff, F/M, Family Dynamics, Implied Sexual Content, Mutual Pining
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-05
Updated: 2020-10-05
Packaged: 2021-03-07 23:00:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,005
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26825545
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/VaultBot/pseuds/VaultBot
Summary: An archaeologist meets his celebrity crush while voluntarily helping out his law enforcement friends on an assignment. Something more blossoms out of it. AU.
Relationships: Ezreal/Kai'Sa (League of Legends)
Comments: 15
Kudos: 31





	What a Fool Believes

**Author's Note:**

> First half of the fic revolves more around the Piltover gang, the second half is more Ez x Kai'Sa focused.
> 
> Also, first time writing a fanfic, no flame pls :))
> 
> EDIT: I forgot Kai'Sa's VA had an accent + reading some KDA lore, added a couple of lines. I originally thought she was Aussie IRL, but a google search leads me to the conclusion that she's South African, which is closer in proximity to Egypt (lots of Shurima champs were based off Ancient Egypt obviously), so that's what I'm running with lol

This wasn’t exactly what Ezreal’s idea was of a _good time_.

Then again, he was a bit of an adrenaline junkie that liked exploring catacombs, being dehydrated in the middle of a desert, and discovering dark, dingy caves. That was his environment - using his archaeologist title to indulge his Indiana Jones/Uncharted/Tomb Raider-like fantasies.

Well, okay. Maybe there was more to it than that. But he didn’t like thinking about it - why live in the past when you could live in the present?

But as he sat in the back of an armoured van headed to the Staples Centre with his 3 closest friends, he could confirm that this was _definitely_ not his element.

Ezreal had dressed up for the part at least. White suit, white gloves, indigo vest, lilac shirt, and a magenta corsage had filled out the look. A Kevlar vest underneath his clothes, as well as some rope in one of his pockets too. Could never go wrong with rope.

Right now, he was pulling his friends in the FBI a favour. Vi had asked him a couple of days ago if he and Jayce if they could join in on her and Caitlyn’s assignment - a suspected terror attack at a concert. Just like Jayce, he had received combat training from his brief history in the FBI, and exploring all of those ruins meant that he regularly had to shoot at terrain. He typically used the old flintlock he had found while exploring a tomb in Egypt - but today, he had an M1911 tucked away in his inner suit pocket. Out of sight, out of mind, of course.

Originally, Ezreal had said no to this gig. Then Vi bribed him with fat stacks of cash.

Honestly, he had no idea why the FBI even needed the extra manpower. Well, okay. That was a bad question. Maybe the better question was why they were understaffed on a random autumn night in LA. Besides, couldn’t they just use the LAPD or something?

Whatever, wasn’t like he was running a job for anyone right now. Jayce was always working on his own side projects - he was available whenever too. Ezreal wasn’t exactly in the position to be picky with jobs since he was behind on rent, _again._ Vi promised him way too much money to refuse. Didn’t hurt that Vi asking him for a big favour would mean that he afford to be a little pickier with the jobs she offered him in the immediate future.

Vi had given him a nod when they had met up - she looked almost as ridiculous as he did as well. Her pink hair had been slicked back, and she was only wearing a cream coloured vest with rolled up sleeves. Her signature knuckles had been worn as well - probably the ones that shocked people. Or caused small explosions. Was she even authorized to use those…?

Jayce had looked the least strange between the three of them - in fact, his hair didn’t look all that different than it usually was. Cleanly shaven though - and a similar 3-piece getup just like he had on. Apparently, they allowed Jayce to bring an extremely short barrelled Remington 870, which he neatly hid underneath his suit. He had brought his electrical hammer too - Jayce was never one for using standardized equipment, opting for his own homemade taser. Maybe he should’ve brought his own gun…

Cait was dressed in normal clothes, for the most part. All dark, with camo and a sniper’s beret. A briefcase was right beside her - probably containing her sniper. She had it custom made to be able fire tranquilizer rounds for this assignment and if worst came to worst, she could cover them with actual bullets.

Honestly? They probably looked more like the terrorists than the counter-terrorist force. At least, he knew that if he was a stranger, he would definitely think that they looked at least a little _suspicious._ What kinda group pulls up with three matching outfits and one odd one out?

Cait broke the silence.

“Alright, hopefully this is just a false alarm, and everyone goes home happy. But there’s definitely enough evidence to warrant this. Everyone knows what the plan is, right?”

“Yup.”

“Uh-huh.”

“Cupcake, this is pretty pointless, don’t you think?”

“Well, just making sure. Ez, Jayce, this is an incredible service you’re doing for us - it was only supposed to be the two of us. I’d hate to risk anyone of you, so if things go bad…”

“Hey, no bad juju, alright? We’re all getting out alive. Besides, it’s not your fault that the FBI’s going through some budget cuts right now, or whatever,” Ezreal reasoned.

His teeth were starting to chatter, legs shaking - he was probably hiding his anxiety poorly to them. They had practically raised him after all. Cait probably knew all of his tics - she had known him the longest, ever since that fateful day when he was twelve.

“Ez, you’re probably the one who’s fired that pistol of yours the most in the past few months - didn’t you have to survive in the wilderness of Peru for a while last year? You’ll be fine. You always were the second best shot among us, after Cait.”

Jayce tried to soothe him - funny, because he was usually the drama queen of the 4 and not the voice of reason. It was still appreciated, though.

“Ah, I dunno. Firing a gun at animals, or inanimate objects? Easy. At people? Definitely harder. When people are watching me and one mistake could screw everything up? Hardest.”

“Trust me, you have unparalleled amounts of luck. How the hell did you escape all of those _deathtraps_ you routinely go to otherwise…?” Jayce trailed off, a ghost of a smile on his lips.

“That's not luck, it's skill!”

“See what I mean – that’s just the mentality you need to have. _Outskill_ your way to victory.”

“Hopefully, you don’t have to fire a gun at anyone - I’ll try my best to make sure of that,” Cait cut in, speaking evenly.

Vi quickly steered the topic, sensing his discomfort. “Alright, alright. Let’s talk about other things. Hey Jayce - didn’t Tesla try and beg you to come back again?”

“Oh definitely. Elon _needs_ me…”

* * *

The plan was simple - hopefully, this really was nothing but a prank threat on the performers.

Ezreal, Vi and Jayce were to be triangulated - walking among the crowd and rotating clockwise through out the stands. Their disguises were to allow them to blend in with the crowd. All three of them had chemical sensors developed by Jayce - used to detect any abnormal, commonly explosive chemicals nearby. Nitroglycerine, for one. Any time it went off, Cait was to be signaled, and she would fire off a tranquilizer round from her rifle. She would be up above, near the light fixtures. Hopefully, everyone around the target would think that they had simply passed out from drinking. A guard would pick them up and things should take care of themselves from there.

But before, the 4 of them had to meet the main attraction at the venue - the members of K/DA.

“All personnel should have been notified about our plan, including the idols, but just in case…” Cait trailed off, as the 4 of them hopped out of the armoured van.

And so they had went backstage in the Staples Centre - to meet up with some celebrities. Masks on too. Jayce was well known among the engineering world, and it was the same with Ezreal and archaeology as well. Would’ve been bad if someone in the crowd recognized either of them - they had to move quickly and efficiently without distractions.

K/DA were waiting in the makeup room and everyone was tense. All of the security guards present, their manager and of course the 5 popstars as well. Made Ezreal feel a little better, seeing that he wasn’t the only one wound up.

Fortunately, wearing a mask had allowed him to look at the idols without a dumb expression that was surely on his face. He didn’t really listen to music all that much, since he was usually exploring places with no internet. He only learned about what K/DA was when he came home briefly 6 months ago. Course, he didn't stick around for long. Never did - always a new ruin to explore.

He originally had no idea that he was trying to prevent an attack that was allegedly supposed to happen today when Vi proposed this idea to him the day before - she had neglected to mention this point until literally hours before he had gotten into the van. Somehow, she had deceived him into thinking this would be some small indie band at a local joint - not the freaking Staples Centre, with possibly the most popular girl group in the world performing there. Ezreal was kicking himself - he should’ve asked for more details. This was definitely a part of the reason why he was nervous - one mistake, and an incident that would make the international news would trigger. He’d rather not have this on his conscience.

Well, the other reason was in front of him right now.

All of them looked a little different from their stage counterpart - Akali wasn’t wearing her signature jacket and hat. Evelynn looked different without her striking makeup - more normal, but still ready to crush someone’s balls, or something. Ahri was missing her tail props although the ears were still there. Seraphine had more tattoos than he originally thought - a lot of musical ones. Kai’Sa was missing her wing props, and her hair hadn’t been styled up into a ponytail yet.

It was a little unnerving. He had never realized how much more beautiful the women were in person - especially Kai’sa.

Ah yes. Kai’Sa. His current celebrity crush. He always liked her the best of the group - he liked her dance moves. Great voice too. Really pretty as well - and those purple eyes of hers were mesmerizing. He also heard her studio was located in their hometown of San Francisco, although he wasn’t entirely sure where the location was. Gotta support the local hometown heroes, you know?

Great. So not only could he be directly responsible for international news, but a fuck-up would cause his celebrity crush to die. Wonderful.

Ezreal was honestly baffled. Why the hell were they still performing? They had received the threat a couple of days ago. There was no need to risk the lives of thousands of fans - let alone the artists. The only thing that made sense to him was if there was too much money at stake to cancel - that was something he understood all too well, with the current state of affairs of his bank account. It was why he was here, after all.

Anyways, Cait had broken the deadlock.

“Alright, let’s get started. In a couple of hours, you’ll be up there performing and I’m sure you know the plan already. But just to make sure, all of you, tell me one part of it. Even if it might be nothing, many lives could depend on this on the off-chance it’s true - so please don’t take this lightly.”

Cait had always been authoritative - it suited her best, honestly. Ezreal was more of a _follow orders and don’t question it_ kinda guy, when he had to work in a team. Was just a little exhausting, if he had to dispute every action he didn’t personally agree with.

Wait, wasn’t that _group-think_? Maybe he should stop doing that - Vi always told him to _"be the change you want to see in the world."_

Ezreal had begun to zone out a bit - anyone would be a little strung out in his scenario, right? His mind wandered to where he was going to go for his next expedition. He heard Europe was nice around this time of the year…

“Uh, Ez. Introduce yourself.” Jayce called out, trying to hide a smirk in his voice. Unfortunately, Ezreal fell for the bait.

“Huh? Oh, sorry. Name’s Ezreal. Hope y’all break a leg out there, or something.”

Suddenly, everyone in the room seemed like they were trying their hardest not to laugh. Especially the girls of K/DA. He blushed - thankfully none of them could realize it because of his face mask. Kai’Sa in particular was giggling more than the rest of them. Well, that was a little humiliating. At least the atmosphere changed a little - lightening up a bit.

Jayce’s eyes were twinkling - a sign of his signature shit-eating grin. Ezreal made a mental note to go slash the tires of his car, or something. Vi had snorted loudly, muttering, “Classic Ez.”

Cait on the other hand was less than amused.

“Ezreal. You were supposed to explain the evacuation plan. And don’t zone out - I know you’re volunteering right now, but there are lives at stake here.”

Uh oh. Cait was reprimanding him again. The nagging never really stopped even as he became an adult. She was only 9 years older than him - guess it was a sign that she cared.

“Sorry, sorry. Anyways…”

Ez went on to discuss the escape route as the rest of the room had died down. He was sure to be meticulous about it - his typical style of _winging it_ wasn’t exactly gonna fly in this case, and he and Jayce had both made sure that there were several contingencies, just in case. Cait had mentioned before that it was nice having them on the case - more perspectives, less flaws in their plan. Especially with a details-oriented guy like Jayce.

“…so that concludes it. Questions, comments, concerns? I hope for everyone’s sake that you don’t hide them if you do.”

Eve smirked. “Only one. What’s your age?”

“Uh, is that a trick question? Well, it’s 24…” Ezreal trailed off. Wait. Was he supposed to answer that? Uh oh, Cait was giving him the evil eye again.

“Hmm… interesting.”

“Ooh, Kai's turning 24 soon too.”

“Husband material.”

“Invite us to the wedding!”

“Guys, can you stop?” Kai’Sa sounded somewhere between mortified and annoyed - although Ezreal didn’t seem to notice the pink that had tinged her ears. He was more bummed at her tone instead. Aw well, guess there were other celebrities to like instead.

“Okay, okay. Seems like you guys got the gist of it. We’ll simulate some test runs, and we’re just going to have to wait and see how it plays out, unfortunately.” Vi laughed, much to Ezreal’s chagrin.

* * *

Most of the security detail and other backstage crew had been used as the fake crowd, while K/DA had rehearsed on stage. They had run through all sorts of simulations - Caitlyn used rubber bullets and aimed for specific parts of security that would cause no harm to them but should theoretically put a target to sleep. Looks like it worked - no one around really realized that the person next to them had gotten shot until Cait relayed it to them. The ground team had all ran through their codewords, along with their signals to each other.

Twice, they had done the emergency evacuation sequence. Thankfully, they both had gone off without a hitch.

Little did Ezreal know, a certain dancer among the group had been watching him the whole time, quite closely…

Finally, the time had come. 7PM - Staples Centre was abuzz with excitement. It was time for K/DA’s performance to start.

The ground team had been sitting in distantly spaced apart seats on the first level, trying to look as inconspicuous as possible. They all had their burner phones out, swiping through, looking a little annoyed. The first fans to come in looked at them a little strangely - although as more and more people flooded in, nobody really noticed their strange get ups afterwards.

“LA! Are you ready!? Let’s start the show!”

That was their cue - Ezreal, Vi and Jayce stood up started working their way throughout the crowd, scanning for anyone with potential explosives.

“Codenames from here on out - let’s do this guys,” Cait’s voice buzzed in his ears. Ezreal looked up - he was pretty sure he saw the glint of a scope near the ceiling - probably Cait in her bird’s nest, looking around.

The first part of the show had been a blur - they made good pace, scanning a majority of the people in the stands. Caitlyn kept feeding them information and reminders - was this what it was like to work with her on a case? So well organized. Soon enough, an intermission had started and by the midway point of the show and the three of them had collectively found… nothing.

“Nothing cupcake. So far, so good.”

“Keep an eye out - look for anyone new, or anyone you didn’t really recognize from earlier.”

Well, there had been a strange looking guy earlier - he was wearing a mask that had covered his entire face. Were those even legal in California? Probably nothing. He had left the performance for a while, although he had been back soon enough. Probably just a washroom break or something. But there was a strange feeling in the pit of Ez’s stomach - something didn’t feel quite right about him. He kept it to himself, though.

The second half of the show started, as the three of them began cycling around again.

Finally, by the time the BADDEST had been playing, they had found two people in rapid succession - with their sensors going off the charts with activity as well.

“Suspect. 3’O Clock. Short man - goggles,” Jayce had signaled to Cait.

“Got a bead, Tesla. Taking the shot.”

A collective “affirmative,” had rung throughout their ears, as Vi started signaling as well, near opposite to Jayce’s current position.

“Suspect. 11’O Clock. Blue and pink. Kinda looks familiar...”

“Lining it up, Donut. Taking it now.”

Security guards had shown up soon after - to “help” the knocked-out suspects. They were probably gonna get arrested, or something.

“Good work team. Keep it up - only this song and POPSTARS is left now. The encore too.”

Finally, the show had finished - ending at around 9:30 pm after starting at 7. Ezreal didn’t even really listen to the songs in the background - as there was a non-stop stream of talking in his earpiece.

“Okay. I think we’re in the clear - let’s regroup backstage, you three.”

“Yes ma’am!”

“Sure thing.”

“Okay, Cupcake.”

Something didn’t feel right in Ezreal’s stomach though. He had noticed the man with a metallic looking mask from earlier - had left twice, before coming back again. They were much longer absences than just a washroom break though. And now, he seemed to have slipped away just before the encore started and hadn’t returned. He tried to think about where he was seated, and any of the stairwells nearby - before drawing a blank. Ezreal decided that he should just go and check instead of wasting time here.

Be the change you want to see in the world. Well, guess it was time to stop _group-thinking._

“I don’t feel quite right about something guys. I’m gonna go check on it - I’ll be there soon.”

Vi sounded exasperated. “Museum, wait! Bring someon- Shit! Where’d you go? I swear, when we get back, I’m gonna throttle you…”

“Uh, Cupcake, I just saw the seat section 117-118 - I’m heading to the area between the dressing rooms and the stage. Probably nothing, but I still want to confirm it…”

Cait sounded a little concerned. “Affirmative. One of you, tail him!”

“I’m on it,” Jayce had muttered. “Museum, where the hell did you go…?”

Ezreal was running now - he had shown security his lanyard - which gained him instant access to the tunnel the idols had emerged and exited from, to some nearby fans’ dismay. Sprinting down the hall, there had been a disturbing lack of security around - was this normal?

“Tesla, there’s less security here. What are their schedules? Cupcake, mind tapping into the security guard channels - I think numbers 11-20 were supposed to be stationed at this area.”

“Hold on and slow down, Museum! Follow protocol!”

Racing down, he had taken a left into the hallway where their changing rooms were - and saw absolutely no security around here either.

“Shit! There’s no one in this hall either - Donut, get your ass over here too! Might need backup!”

“Museum, tell me this is all just a prank…”

“Unfortunately, I don’t think so. I’ll check all of the changing rooms.”

Ezreal had started knocking on each of the doors at a rapid pace - they should be in here right now, according to schedule.

4 of them had yielded some exasperated responses from the artists from beyond - he could probably rule those out. The last one though… there seemed to be a distorted voice on the other side - revenge, a perfect crime, and a father?

He didn’t even hesitate - Ezreal kicked open the door, whipping out his own pistol, which revealed the masked man he had seen earlier, pointing a .44 magnum straight at Kai’Sa with her performance clothes still on, hands in the air.

Ezreal didn’t think twice as the door barely finished swinging open, pulling the trigger immediately and aiming for the revolver in the masked man’s hand. His aim was true - sending the gun flying. However, the man had pivoted and fired a round at him as well - which barely went wide of his head thanks to him shooting first, changing the trajectory of the bullet and grazing his shoulder instead.

His earpiece was filled with chatter, yet again.

“The hell? Was that a gunshot?”

“Kid, get the hell out of there!”

“Museum? MUSEUM!”

To his surprise, Kai’Sa leapt to grab the spinning revolver in mid-air, palming it, twirling and pointing it straight at the masked man in one fluid motion; she had two hands on the gun, her right index finger resting on the side of the trigger. A professional grip - she must’ve had experience handling guns before.

“Code yellow, I repeat, code yellow. Intruder has been detained in subject 5’s room - only one right now, could be more. He had a firearm - Donut, Tesla, check the other rooms - just in case,” Ezreal muttered.

“Museum, are you alright? That was a gunshot, yeah?” Jayce’s concerned voice rang out.

“I’m fine, small injury, whatever. Would’ve been nice to have my flintlock instead - the one that flashes with light from the barrel.”

“Holy shit, good instincts Museum. You would’ve made a fine operative, you know that? Damn shame. Tesla and I are close by - stay in the room, protect her. We’ll check the other areas out.”

Cait breathed a sigh of relief as well. “Relaying to the other teams right now - I’m glad you took the initiative, could’ve been a disaster. I’m on my way.”

Ezreal lowered his gun, which had previously been pointed straight at the intruder. Now there was only one gun trained in on the intruder’s head from the idol in the room. He had turned his attention to the woman handling the gun. Surprisingly enough, he forgot all about his crush on her in the moment - adrenaline was pumping. “I’m assuming you can use that - my life in your hands.”

All she did was nod, never breaking her piercing gaze on the man in front of her, who had his arms in the air. She looked hot, more than ever right now - but that was a thought he shoved in the back of his mind.

“I’m patting you down - another officer will be here shortly to arrest you, and give you your Miranda rights. What I find right now will influence your sentence.”

“Hmph. All I wanted was revenge against the man who ruined my life - wouldn’t ruining his daughter’s show be fair enough? Just let me go, you blond twink. Pinky swear I won’t do anything~”

That irked him a little. His eye twitched a bit at the word _twink_. “Oh please, tell it to the guys in the slammer.”

Ezreal had pulled out his rope - tying the suspect’s hands together extra tightly. It would have to do for now, since Cait nor Vi gave him a pair of cuffs. Guess that was a mistake in hindsight. Like he always said, could never go wrong with rope.

He had confiscated a few explosives from some well hidden areas on his person - things that looked like cherry bombs, although they all had a flower insignia on them. Maybe… mines were a more accurate term to describe them. He had grenades too. Ezreal felt a little uncomfortable doing this - the guy seemed to be humming some tune, and he could practically feel Kai'Sa's gaze on him as he searched his body.

“Y’all, I found some explosives on his person - tell security to keep an eye out for mines. For that matter - tell them to look for large crates and containers - we might be able to find some missing guards if he knocked them out, or worse.”

“Of course I knocked them out - I am a professional after all. You might not find all the bodies though. I made sure to do a good job at hiding them. Like a game.” The man muttered, amused.

“Relaying,” Cait sounded out of breath - was she running all the way from her position near the ceiling?

Ezreal stopped listening to the amount of chatter that was going on in his ear, as he turned his attention to the popstar. Kai’Sa seemed angry - she seemed to be seething with rage.

“Listen, I dunno what kind of enemies my dad made when he was working abroad, but you need to take this up with him. Not innocent people here. Do you know how many people you would’ve killed? How can you be so brazen with your actions?”

“Ha. Hahaha. Ahahaha! Don’t you realize the irony of that statement, little girl? Of how many lives your father has taken? This was retribution. The perfect spot - under the lights of one of the biggest stages in the world! It really is unfortunate that my two associates were caught - your death should’ve been the 4th act, the thrilling conclusion to _my_ performance.”

Kai’Sa’s hands had only just began to tremble - it was pretty obvious she wanted to pull the trigger badly, and Ezreal didn’t blame her. What was more impressive was that she was able to keep a steady hand throughout the last few minutes - that only confirmed to him that she was definitely no amateur.

“Alright, alright, break it up. Remember that anything that you say can be and will be used against you? I’m willing to testify - I might be an impatient guy, but I enjoy long and painful procedures in court.”

A lie of course. Ezreal hated jury duty and he’d probably hate being a witness too, if it was anything like that. But that seemed to shut the man up.

Finally, Cait had sprinted in, panting. She looked relieved, seeing him safe. Cait pulled him into a tight hug, to Ezreal's surprise.

“Ez, you need to stop scaring us! Do you know how worried you made me - and the rest of us? I don’t understand how you keep getting yourself into so much trouble… ever since that day I found you in the park, all I’ve done is worry, worry, worry about you! You're gonna give us a heart attack one day!”

“Yeah, yeah _._ Relax - everything worked itself out, didn't it?”

"You could've lost your life, and you're telling _me_ to relax? I don't know why I should expect anything different from you! You never call home, and you're always risking your life in some _dungeon_."

"Okay, okay. I'm sorry, _mom_. And for the record, I called you guys twice last time - twice more than I usually do!"

“Damn straight. I want weekly calls now. It was about time you admitted that other thing too - I know it was you who baked that cake on mother’s day for us.”

Ezreal flushed. “Can’t we talk about this somewhere else?”

He was thoroughly embarrassed - Kai’Sa probably heard everything.

Although he didn’t quite realize that the idol was quite jealous of the woman who had given her saviour a hug… until the mom comment. That had sparked her interest instead - what kind of dynamic did these guys have?

Cait finally seemed to notice the tied up suspect - looking thoroughly amused by the scene in front of him. Her face went frigidly cold - as she let go of Ezreal and pulled out her ID.

“Khada Jhin, you’re under arrest for attempted murder, attempted acts of terrorism, and assault and battery on several guards. And this isn’t counting all of your other exploits across the nation. You have the right to remain silent…”

Holy shit. Made sense why FBI were involved, and not local police. They must’ve known. An international serial murderer and assassin huh…?

* * *

The rest of the night was a bit of a blur.

Ezreal had to get his shoulder checked out by the on-site doctor - fortunately, it didn’t require any surgery. He was probably going to get a second opinion, just in case. He had to take care of his body after all - his travels already banged it up enough.

Vi and Jayce had mobbed him quickly, giving him noogies and ruffling his hair proudly. Jayce told him how proud he was of him and how far he came from the little brat he had met when he was 12. Vi told him that she longer considered him as the _little squirt_ anymore. For the time being anyways – he was sure Vi would go back to calling him that the next time he refused a favour from her. Still, Ezreal felt a little bit of pride from hearing that - he was obnoxious back then. Well, he still was. Honestly, Ezreal had no idea how the three of them dealt with him and his antics.

Cait barked at them to leave him alone - telling them he needed to get some rest. Mama Caitlyn, striking yet again.

The K/DA members had stopped by to thank him when the doctor was checking his shoulder - he had taken off his mask, revealing his face. His shirt was originally off for the doc to examine the wound, but he hastily threw on his dress shirt when he heard them approach - he was a little self conscious of all his previous injuries and scars littered about.

Unfortunately, now they knew what his real face looked like – his youthful, slightly cocky, elfish face. They seemed to laugh at that. All of them had something nice to say though, like, “Get well soon!” or “You saved our girl - we’ll be in your debt forever!” and “How can we ever repay you?” or even “Oh my. A battle scar~”

Ezreal had been embarrassed, of course. The whole day had been just one big embarrassment really, other than his big moment. Getting clowned in the van by the gang, by the K/DA members before rehearsal, hell, even Jhin mocked him too. Not to mention Cait’s comments exposing him in front of Kai’Sa. Ezreal regretted taking this job now. He should’ve known something was up when he only heard _security detail at a concert_. _Quick_ , Vi said. _Easy money,_ she said. Too good to be true. If he had known how much his ego would’ve been stepped on today, he wouldn’t have touched this job with a 30 foot pole.

Well okay. Maybe rescuing Kai’Sa and getting a hug as a thank you for saving her life was enough to mitigate all of that. He had flushed red - well, he already was from all the idols’ previous comments, so thankfully she didn’t realize it. Her embrace was warm, inviting, and a little clingy; kinda like a weird fusion of Vi’s bear hugs mixed with Jayce’s man hugs. Definitely nice. Shame the moment couldn't last forever.

Ezreal didn’t even realize how red Kai’Sa was either, as she thanked him profusely for saving her life.

He got a couple of photos of them as well - and one big group photo between the 9 of them. That was enough repayment for his service, in his eyes. Surprisingly, the girls had wanted to trade numbers and private social media with all of them - and had gotten a little too excited when they mentioned that the 4 of them normally live in San Francisco - Kai’Sa’s hometown.

Seemed like everyone but Ezreal noticed how Kai’Sa’s face lit up at that notion.

Finally, it was time to go - the police officers had taken all their statements, and they had done a reasonable sweep around the perimeter. It was probably safe. Ezreal had climbed into the van along with his group, as they drove back to their hotel. All in a day’s work, he supposed…

* * *

About a week later, Ezreal found himself walking the streets of his city, San Francisco.

He was to fly off the next day - he was asked by his contact to meet in New Zealand, where they would go over more details. Ezreal was ready to go down another rabbit hole - last time he had gotten a vague tip, he had gone from some old mansion in Paris to the mountains of Hokkaido, finding some old, original Renaissance sketch there. Hopefully, this one was just as good. Paid well too - last time, the guy had basically written him a blank cheque.

Ezreal was in his normal exploring attire as he roamed the streets - his ratty old brown jacket, cargo pants and military boots. About a thousand pockets lining his jacket and pants too. His goggles were hanging from his neck - his good luck charm. Only thing that was missing was his spelunking helmet and his harness - those, he didn’t really need on a quick shopping trip.

On his way back, Ezreal had just walked by a dance studio as he was walking back to his apartment from Home Depot - could never have enough rope on a job. It was his creed, after all. He never really walked on this route when going back home before - he only just realized it was a lot faster to get to his home by taking this path. As he passed by, he saw **The Firefly Collective** printed in big bold letters. Wait a second, that sounded familiar…

“Ez!?”

“Hm?”

He turned around and it was Kai’Sa, in the flesh, washing the windows. She was wearing normal clothes too - spandex leggings and a low-cut top. Her dark hair was tied up into a ponytail, and her lovely violet eyes peering curiously into his. He tried really hard not to stare at her bare stomach, or her curves. Somehow, she looked even more gorgeous in normal clothes.

“Oh, Kai’Sa! What are you doing here?”

“This is my dance studio - the one that I own and live in, when I’m not touring, or writing and recording new songs with the girls.”

“Really? Small world. I didn’t realize you lived a few blocks away from my apartment. How long have you owned it?”

“A few years, give or take. Maybe 3 years in a month?”

“Huh, was around the time I moved out of Jayce’s penthouse.”

Ezreal looked around at the building - it was a 3 story building and was reasonably large. This was probably either a hefty investment from when she was younger, or she was paying massive amounts of rent. Either way, it probably didn’t matter anymore, now that she was a popstar and probably had plenty of money. Unlike him anyways - he was always on the verge of going under. In fact, it was the only reason why he had let Vi and Jayce ask him for _favours_ all the time - they usually paid well. Especially Jayce – he was pretty well versed with his projects by now, mostly learning from osmosis. He loved his archaeology work, but it didn’t really pay all that well consistently. Usually some third party, rich, trust fund guy asked him to investigate an artifact for their personal collection, or a museum had approached to him to ask him to help them recover and restore old relics every couple of months. Usually, he liked the latter better. The former had more money in it, but it helped when he knew where he was going and looking for rather than having some old myth shoved in front of him and being left to his own devices for weeks, before he finally worked out a clue where to go.

Ezreal stopped zoning out. “If I knew you lived nearby, I probably would’ve visited. Or maybe not - I just found out what K/DA was after coming back a few months ago. Or was it half a year? I'm not sure anymore, keeping track of the time is hard.”

Kai’Sa blinked. “Uh, what do you do for a living? Live under a rock?”

“Archaeology! So you're not too far off the mark! So glad I didn’t listen to Cait and Vi and followed Jayce’s advice to follow my own path, regardless of the money. Probably would've been stuck in a job I don't really care for otherwise.”

“Oh, so you’re not in the FBI?”

“Nah. I'm an inactive member - was just helping out last week. Anyways, I’ll stop by more often! And as a pro-tip, it’s usually obvious when I’m not abroad, in case you’re wondering. I’m never active on social media unless I’m home again.”

“I’d like that - it gets a little lonely sometimes.” She paused, then blushed. “Oh! Where are my manners, we’ve just been talking out here this whole time! Come in please! If you’re not busy, that is.”

“Nah, was just gonna take a nap when I got home - I’ll come in.”

* * *

There were dance classes going on inside of the building apparently - a teacher was leading some teenagers through a complicated looking ballet sequence. Looked cool though.

Everyone around seemed to know Kai’Sa – either giving her a starstruck wave, or a smile. They also looked quizzically at him - probably wondering what some average joe off the streets was doing in a place like this, with a celebrity like her. Well, that's what he probably would've thought anyways.

They had walked into the back where the stairs were located. She went up first - after which Ezreal looked away from her ass, blushing. Kai’Sa had noticed his composure and a grin had grown on her face, giggling internally. Ezreal didn’t seem to realize this - he was a little more interested at looking down at his boots.

After climbing up to the third floor, there was a single door up here in the narrow hall. Kai’sa fished out a key from somewhere - did she even have pockets, with the clothes she had on? _That_ was a real mystery.

The door swung open, revealing a very modern studio/loft-like apartment. The kitchen was huge - probably as big as the kitchen, entrance, and the living room of his apartment combined. Hell, the island was probably almost the size of his kitchen. Just beyond was an L shaped couch with a 65” flatscreen mounted on the wall. A very antique and rustic looking coffee table in front of the couch, with a laptop and some papers scattered about on its surface. There were also a set of stairs near the couch, presumably leading up to her bed. A few doors by the stairs too - probably a closet and bathroom, or something.

The two of them kicked off their shoes in the entrance, where Kai’Sa revealed a closet filled with nothing but shoes. He blinked a couple of times, not believing the volume that existed in there, before deciding to not question it.

“Welcome to my humble abode, take a seat on the couch. Coffee? Tea?”

“I’ll just take black coffee, thanks.”

“Coming right up.”

Ezreal looked through the wall to ceiling windows - a perfect view of downtown San Fran. On the coffee table, looked to be some notes on songs - writing lyrics, maybe?

“Damn, nice pad. Love the view! My old, dingy, cardboard box of an apartment has a great view of the next-door building.”

“Yikes. Does archaeology really not pay all that well?”

“Well, I do freelance work. Don’t like being tied down by a single museum or company, you know? Part of the appeal was the freedom - which includes where I go and which jobs I choose. Sucks that I live from job to job, but it’s never really bothered me. I only need enough to finance my next trip and pay off the rent.”

"Didn't you mention something about living in a penthouse before? What happened?"

"Just wanted a sense of independence. Helped me grow up a little too, having to worry about the bills. If Jayce had it his way, he'd lock me down in his garage and make me his permanent assistant, or something."

As she milled about in her kitchen, brewing some coffee, he had noticed some photos near the TV. They were mostly photos of her and her father at different stages of her life. When she was a toddler, when she looked to be in middle school for a dance competition, and a photo of her graduation, holding up her degree. He smiled at that - judging by the look of happiness on their faces, it was quite obvious she was close with him.

“You close with your old man?”

Kai’Sa had stealthily walked up behind him, startling Ezreal. She looked at the photos with a nostalgic gaze.

“Hm… I used to resent him a lot in the past. Mom was originally from South Africa and my dad had dual citizenship with the US and South Africa. But my mom passed when I was really young, so I always felt like I had no home because of his job that took him abroad. No friends - I was always lonely too. Boarding school after boarding school. I began to hate his work - I missed the days when he was around. But he was there when it mattered. My first dance competition. My first breakup. My university graduation. My first concert with K/DA. He may have been an absent for a large part of my life, but I realized that I shouldn’t doubt his love for me. He always manages to make time and come back for a week for Christmas and New Years. I’m glad my birthday falls between those days too - I always get to spend time with him on the important days. I wouldn’t trade him for the world.”

“His name?”

“Kassadin.”

“Woah, cool name. Any of the stuff that psycho said back then was true? You seemed to take it personally.”

Ezreal regretted asking it as soon as he said it – why did he have no filter in his brain? He knew if he was in her shoes, he wouldn’t have been happy answering that question. Fortunately, Kai’Sa didn’t seem bothered too much.

“He’s a CIA agent, so I suppose there might be an inkling of truth to that. But coming from him, that was incredibly hypocritical. He was a serial killer himself – a real _pot calling the kettle black_ moment. Besides, I know my father – if he had to kill, it was because he was forced to, not because he wanted to. Not like… him.” Her voice shook at the end.

“I hear you. Guy was clearly unhinged. If someone was shit-talking my family, I probably would’ve been impulsive enough to pull the trigger – you showed an impressive amount of discipline.”

Kai’Sa played with her hair a bit, looking bashful as she walked back to the kitchen - the coffee had finished brewing.

“So, I’m guessing the person who taught you how to shoot was…”

“Yes, also my dad. He always told me it was important - I never really got why, but in that moment… it turned out to be useful as a threat, even if you did all of the work.”

“You make me blush. Besides, your grip was textbook. Trigger discipline and a steady hand as well - you’re probably a crack shot. Maybe better than me, I’m self taught, for the most part.”

She blushed and smiled at the compliment as she poured out the coffee into two mugs. Fortunately for her, the blond was admiring the view of the skyline of San Francisco - away from her currently pink ears.

“Self-taught? I would’ve thought that one of your FBI friends would’ve taught you. Who were they - Caitlyn and Vi?”

“Yup, them. Neither of them are really great with pistols though - Caitlyn’s always been a marksman with her rifle and Vi prefers hand-to-hand combat. They know a little, and Cait taught me as much as she knew, but there was only so much she really could help me with, other than form.”

Kai’Sa stirred her the brew in her own mug.

“So, volunteering as an FBI operative huh? Kinda weird - could’ve fooled me. Thought you really were a professional when you detained him.”

“Haha. Well, I'm an inactive member, after all. It'd be a little weird if I didn't look somewhat competent. Actually, maybe not. Forgot all of the stuff that they made me memorize. Anyways, Jayce is the same, actually. It was why he told me to follow my own dreams. He knew firsthand that he never really liked that line of work - and he probably realized before I did that I was the same.”

“So you must’ve kept shooting since then, right? That was one of the fastest _quickdraws_ I’ve ever seen - just as fast as my father’s whenever he tried to impress me when I was younger.”

“Oh. I never stopped shooting really - usually just to dislodge debris or try to make a bigger ledge in caves whenever I went out on my trips. Occasionally hunting when I got stuck in the wilderness in my travels.”

“Oh, so you’re like Bear Grylls?”

“Eh, a blonder, more handsome, American version of him. Indiana Jones might be a better comparison. Or maybe a mix of the two.”

Kai’Sa giggled as she had arrived at the couch - she walked right in front of him yet again, bending over in his line of sight slightly to place the cup of coffee on the table. Either she knew what she was doing and was teasing him, or she was the most oblivious girl in the world. The latter was probably more likely.

He leaned over to grab the cup of joe, shaking his head and trying to pull his mind out of the gutter as she took a seat on the corner of the L.

"Any reason why you chose San Fran to settle down in? Jayce only stays here because of Silicon Valley, otherwise, I think he would've left for Seattle or something a long time ago," Ezreal asked, taking a sip.

"Of all the cities I went to school in - Shanghai, Paris, New York, Johannesburg, and others, San Francisco always felt the most like home to me. It was where I first started dancing, so I wanted to help other people develop their skills here."

“And how long have you been working as an artist? I don’t really know all that much about K/DA - hell, I barely know about any of the latest TV shows, or even the latest memes either. Is the Arthur fist still a thing? Perks of having no internet in the wild, and only coming back for a few days at a time, I guess.”

“What? Really? Let’s go on the internet later or something, I’ll show you. As for the other questions, well… opened my dance school 3 years ago. Ahri and Eve approached me 2 years ago - they had heard rumours of a local dancer in San Fran that could sing. Akali joined us after. That was when we hit it big with POPSTARS. So I want to say about two years? A lot has changed since then - Seraphine joined us. I love my work - dancing has always been my passion and writing songs was a hobby of mine too, as you can tell from the papers on the table.”

She pointed at the papers near her laptop - seems that confirmed his original suspicion.

“Surprised you still work here - would’ve thought you’d get mobbed by fans on the daily, or something.”

“Hmm… No one knows I live up here. Most people think it’s an office - even the teachers do. Helps that I’m usually only around for a week or two at a time. Besides - dance is a universal language. I’ve been able to connect with so many people, and it helps to humanize me. That I can dance along with all of the people who come here at any given day, and create a space where everyone can belong. That was my goal when I opened this school, and it still is now, as an idol. Isn’t that what we should strive for, as humans?”

“I feel you. Feel the same way about archaeology as well - no matter what country I find myself in, there are always tourists there, fascinated with our work. Always historians out there, trying to aid and understand what the past held at some point. And there are always other archaeologists I find at sites, there for the same reasons I am; even if we can’t communicate with each other, we’re still trying to accomplish the same thing. And I find that universality incredible.”

Kai’Sa smiled as she sipped from her mug - seemed like she was glad they were on the same page.

“Of course, I’m also addicted to exploring, danger, and just being an adrenaline junkie in general so there’s also that. Actually, that’s probably the bigger reason why I love my work anyway - and I’m sure I’m not alone in that either!” Ezreal laughed, a little too happily. Just had to open his big, fat mouth...

“Ez! I can’t believe you!”

“Jayce always told me not to lie! Well, I only follow that rule when it’s convenient. Anyways, I’m guessing if you never became an idol, you would’ve kept working here?”

“Yup, sounds about right. Depending on how well it would’ve done, I might’ve opened a couple more schools here in the city. I was happy with my old life – although I’m even happier now. How about you? Ever thought about settling down? Any other things you wanted to do?”

“Oh yikes. Hard question. Ideally, I’d probably never settle down, at least not anytime soon. Too much of a free spirit – too many places I haven’t seen yet. Kinda like Peter Pan, you know?”

Was it just his imagination, or did she look a little crestfallen at that? Probably just his imagination.

“But if I had some career crippling injury, or another personal reason like getting hitched or something… there’s a lot of things I could do. Museum curator. Might go to grad school for history – I’m probably qualified already, I have a lot of potential topics for a thesis and dissertation. Guess it depends if my pedigree as an archaeologist is enough to get accepted, though. I love drawing. I dunno, never really thought of it. Guess it would make the gang happier though – Cait always bugs me to call more often.”

Her face grew curious at the last part – seemed like she had a question.

“How about your parents? Are you still close with them? There was the whole thing with Caitlyn I heard by proxy last week, so I began to wonder…?”

Ezreal hesitated. Did he really want to talk about this right now? He didn’t really like thinking about this, let alone talking about this.

“I um, uh, I’m… not exactly on speaking terms with them. Well, maybe that’s not it. More like _can’t_ be on speaking terms with them right now. I dunno, it’s complicated.”

“Really? If you don’t mind me asking, why?”

Well shit. Might as well be truthful, now. Guess he owed her his story - she had told him hers, so it was the least he could do. Ezreal sighed. 

“They’re gone. My parents were archaeologists as well, once upon a time. They weren’t around very much when I was younger, but they were my heroes. I wanted to be just like them. All of the things I said earlier were only observations I noticed about my job - I had two original reasons to want to become an archaeologist. The first was to explore the world alongside them, since I thought they wouldn't have to leave me behind anymore. But one day, they left just like they did every time before… and they never came back.”

Her face had softened at that - there was something written on her face. Was it pity? Empathy? Sorrow? This was why he hated talking about it. He wasn’t exactly that broken up over it… anymore, at the very least. He hated to make others feel awkward at his expense.

“I lived on my own for a while - my uncle was supposed to take care of me whenever they left, but he was a professor that travelled a lot too so he was absent pretty frequently in my life. But one day when I was twelve, I was sleeping on the streets on a park bench - think I got lost when exploring the city. I remember being dehydrated and starving - when a couple of officers came up to me. Thought I was gonna go to jail, or get dropped off in an orphanage or something. But an indigo haired woman nearby pretended to be my older sister and ‘picked me up.’ The cops had never bothered following up and let me go. She asked me if I wanted to go with her back to her home, where she lived with her-then girlfriend. This was Cait and Vi. They’re married now. I stayed with them for a couple of weeks until my uncle came back.”

Kai’Sa looked intrigued by his story - which he took as a sign to continue.

“Jayce entered my life later on - a family friend of Cait’s and Vi's childhood friend. He was everything I wanted to be and so I imitated him - confident, being a smart-ass, acting cool, his bad sense of humour. I ended up moving in with him permanently and my uncle was happy to hear that. I like my uncle, don’t get me wrong… but he’s not exactly a people person. It was best for the both of us. From then on, the 4 of us were inseparable. But once I graduated from high school, I had no idea what I wanted to do. Vi asked me to become FBI like her and Cait - I always did have good aim. Course, I was still invested in my parents at the time. I thought to myself, _if I could just become famous, if I could become a well respected archaeologist like them, they’d have to come back!_ So I decided that I would do what I originally wanted to do and left the FBI after receiving training- to try and make that thought a reality. That was the other reason why I became an archaeologist.”

“Did you ever find them again?”

“No. I was naïve back then, but not anymore. It was a pipe dream anyway. I’m glad that they inspired me to become an archaeologist - it’s my dream job, after all. But after all this time… It’s been 16 years. Safe to say that they’re gone. I’m not too sad though - they either died doing what they loved, or they're happy together in some far off corner of the world. And that’s enough closure for me. It used to bother me a lot, but not anymore - not after realizing that the other three had filled the void my parents left behind and I only began to realize that this past year. So I made the girls a cake for Mother’s day and gave him an old antique watch that I found from the Victorian Era for Father's day. To answer your original question, I guess I am on speaking terms with my parents. With Cait, Jayce and Vi.”

“That’s incredibly beautiful. I'm glad you found a home with them," Kai’Sa had smiled serenely at the end of his spiel. Ezreal didn’t even realize that he had started rambling on by the end - he really did love them as his family.

“Anyways, enough about me. Where are your recording studios, anyways? I doubt there’s one here in San Fran, it’d be a pretty weird place to put one…”

They continued to talk about other topics - some of his old adventures, and some wardrobe failures that no one ever noticed but were clear as day to the girls. She opened her laptop and started looking up some silly things to show him on the internet.

Hours had flown by - talking to Kai’Sa was really easy. Her accent was incredibly attractive. Her laugh was also the cutest thing ever. Shame she was way out of his league - if she was like a tiger in the food chain, then he had to be like a lemming. Plus, she probably had millions of rabid fans, waiting to come for his throat for having this opportunity to talk to her freely. Not to mention her net worth dwarfed his - how much money did he even have left in his bank account again?

Although there had been a few moments that were kinda weird. He noticed she blushed quite a bit whenever he made an off-hand comment about her. She giggled a lot at his awful jokes. She played with her hair a lot when his eyes met hers. Then there was the incident from earlier with her, um, _perfect ass._ Maybe her liking him wasn’t completely out of the realm of possibility - no one laughed at his jokes, unless they were interested in him. That’s a universal truth he learned in high school.

He wasn’t going to risk it this time though - probably just wishful thinking and him potentially biting off more than he could chew. No need to be greedy - he was her friend, at the very least.

If only he knew that the girl next to him was starting to lose hope that he liked her based on the amount of hints she gave him - how could anyone be so _oblivious?_

The sun had set - they had wasted away the afternoon and it was evening now.

“Oh my! It’s getting late. You should probably head back soon. By the way, what did you even buy from Home Depot…?”

“Uh, rope. Lots of it. Always useful, mainly for spelunking or climbing.”

“Hmm… I know some other things you could do with rope.”

Ezreal blinked a couple of times. What did she mean by that?

“Anyways, I’m free for the entire week you know, you can come hang out here. Only if you want, of course! I wouldn’t want you to do anything you wouldn’t want to do…”

Oh. Well, either he was being baited extremely hard for a fail comp video that would haunt him for the rest of his life, or she really did like him.

“Uh… I have a flight tomorrow morning. Hawkes Bay, New Zealand. Something about some old family secrets - think they want me to go look for an old stone and get a rubbing? Not too sure, it was kinda vague.”

Kai’Sa visibly deflated. “Oh…”

“I’m really sorry. Don’t get me wrong - I’d love to take you up on that offer another day! But you know, money talks. I’m kinda broke and all - can’t exactly say no now. I’ll try to wrap this up within a month, but no promises though.”

“Haha, no need to worry. It’s just that it gets a little lonely here, sometimes. Don’t really have too many people to talk to freely like this. I kinda miss the days of not having to worry about what I say when I’m back in town alone. Talking to you... helped me remind me of those days. It made me feel happy.”

He was 99% sure now. “Oh. That was why you invited me to come over? Well, I'm glad I made you feel a little less lonely.”

“Well, that and I never did properly repay you for saving my life. I was planning on doing something a lot more for you later in the week, but I didn’t realize that you weren’t going to be around. And… you know what? Fuck this. I’ll give it you now, you miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.”

And Kai’Sa gracefully tackled him, pinning him to the couch and straddling him. She closed the gap between their faces as their lips had met - attacking his relentlessly. Ezreal was startled – he was about to shoot his shot and make some witty comment to ask her out, but she had beaten him to the punch. Seemed like they were bypassing some of the normal _dating formalities_. That suited him just fine though. He started kissing her back, just as feverishly. Apparently, they both wanted this. Her lips were everything he could’ve ever imagined, and more. Soft and warm. A while later, Ezreal broke the kiss, finally coming up for air.

“Uh, me having a crush on a celebrity like you makes sense, I think, but you liked _me_ this whole time? What did you even see in me?”

“Well, I thought you were cute when you first showed up in your suit. Always liked blond guys. You also had the most beautiful blue eyes I’ve ever seen. Funny, easy-going, and extroverted too. The girls know my type, it’s why they teased me when we first met. Then you saved me, and that was really all I needed to go from interested to _falling for you_. I was basically in love once I saw the rest of your face.”

"Really? When they were laughing at me, I thought you were thinking something along the lines of, I dunno, _how dare this peasant even be uttered in the same sentence as me?_ Kinda hurt my pride a little, you know."

"Oh, no. You really thought I'd talk like that?"

"Well, in the moment anyways. You know what? I just realized how obvious it was that you liked me in hindsight - I can't believe I deluded myself into thinking that they were mixed signals. Well, I can believe actually. Not everyday when a celebrity sends you romantic hints..."

"I literally bent over and stuck my ass out at you - what more of a hint did you need? I should've just sat on your lap, or something."

“Let's not bring that up! Anyways, I'm glad to see that my statistic of _girl who’s attracted to me always laughs at my bad jokes_ is still at a 100% success rate. Good to know!”

“What!?”

“Oh, nothing. Just me talking to myself to try and change the subject. Say, can we go for round two?"

“Mmm~ only if we take this upstairs. Bring your rope too…”

* * *

Kai’Sa went with him to the airport the next morning – where Vi, Jayce and Cait were waiting. All three of them gave him a knowing smile. Vi had even hugged him and whispered, “ _Congrats on the sex.”_

Ezreal flushed. How the hell did they know? He’d rather not let them know about that part of his life, thank you very much.

Lots of hugs all-around – fortunately, no one recognized Kai’Sa in a baseball cap and a long coat. She gave him a farewell kiss too – Vi and Jayce started gagging at their PDA while Cait only laughed, saying that their baby boy was all grown up and had a girl waiting for him now – much to the couple's chagrin. He promised the 4 of them that he’d be back in a flash, before heading off towards the gate.

The pair had fully entered into a relationship after he came back from New Zealand. Well, the Maldives were a bit of a more accurate answer - he had no idea how his wild goose hunt across the globe had him end up in a resort, or why the rubbing he needed was there, but he found the old inscription there, alright. Something about a Providence…? Who knows, it paid well.

She had went public with their relationship after about a year - many hearts were broken after the fact. It helped that he didn’t really use the internet all that much - and since he was usually busy exploring some dingy old ruin, he lived blissfully unaware that people were trying to find out who he was.

Ezreal decided to go for a PhD in history a couple of years into their relationship, surprisingly enough. Ezreal never would’ve thought he’d go back to school, but it made the people in his life – especially Kai’Sa – a lot happier since he was around more. He finished up his graduate classes around the same time they had gotten married, a couple of years later. This was to no one’s surprise, among their friend groups at the very least. The media was excited - they finally had a clear photo of the two of them together in public other than some vague mentions about her having a boyfriend.

The only times he left to travel on his own was when he needed to collect some evidence from some old ruins or consult some former colleagues. Either way, it was enough to satisfy his exploration and travel itch.

And as Ezreal had finished up his trip to the Australian Outback, where he was studying Uluru – he was nearly finished writing that stupid paper, soon he’d be free! – he finally made it back home to Kai’Sa’s studio. Ezreal was heavily jet lagged and exhausted, although that had changed when he found her waiting on their bed, wearing nothing but a bathrobe. This was all he needed to perk up again; a suggestive look was written all over her face as she leapt into his arms - reuniting for the first time in weeks.

Yes, it was true love indeed.

9 months later, there would be proof of that.

**Author's Note:**

> A brief timeline: I don't play league anymore although I still kept up with the pro scene, so my knowledge on some of the champs/reworks' lore behind them after Kayn's release (2017?) is probably off. Fast forward to the start of 2020, where the cinematic came out, and I sold all of my Ez x Lux stock and invested in the Ez x Kai'Sa one. Life got in the way after, so I forgot about this ship. Then I read the Harmonies webtoon that Riot's been putting out recently and I got an idea, so I ran with it in order to write my first ever fanfiction. Also, I just realized I've known this game for nearly 7 years, wow.
> 
> This fic was originally was less than 6k words on the first draft - I added more dialogue and other sections as I read it over, and I nearly doubled its length, haha. Probably a lot of grammar issues that I didn't catch.
> 
> The three skins at the start were supposed to be the three Debonair skins and a slight modification to Resistance Cait, in case it wasn't obvious. Also, I always thought these 4 would be close with each other, maybe having a big siblings-little sibling dynamic or the parents and child relationship I tried to explore.
> 
> A few references to other media here and there.
> 
> All in all, pretty fun to write. Might revisit this ship again if I get another idea!


End file.
